My baby is growing up…

My little Anna hit the six month hump this weekend. She now wiggles to get to toys she wants to reach, likes her rice cereal and demands lots of attention.

We are thinking it is time to get serious about the baby sign language because she is getting harder to read. She has the same screech for a plethora of needs and this gets confusing and irritating very quickly!

We used sign language with our oldest and it worked really well for helping us meet his needs before the fit starts. It is a very useful tool. There are “experts” who say that using baby sign language doesn’t help babies develop speaking skills any faster (or slower) than not using it.

I think these people are missing the point entirely. It’s not about having a super-advanced baby, it’s just about learning how to communicate more effectively with your child while you are waiting for the verbal skills to catch up.

New babies are easy to read. They have only a three or four basic needs. The older they get the more complex their needs become and the harder it is to discern whether they are hungry, want a change of scenery or just want some floor time.

The sign language helps to bridge that gap. I loved it and I really need to get crackin’ on showing Anna how to use it.

I also wanted to show you all this:

Seasoned potatoes and tofu steak! This is my husband’s home cooked meal for last Friday’s lunch. As I wrote before, my husband is home with the kids and this is one of his first attempts at a real meal since taking over the duties at home. It was very good and I am very pleased. I asked him to make it again tonight for supper. Besides, these are one of the few dishes my kids will actually eat.

Can you believe that he actually got them eating raw veggies? It took some salad dressing but I can make my peace that.

Anyways, he is starting to get into a routine at home now and life is getting easier for us all. I have also received a three dollar an hour raise and that does make being away from home more worthwhile financially. I still miss being home but the kids are in good hands!

It is harder for me to find time to read, paint and sew etc. though. My scrapbooks are getting pretty behind. 😦